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<2. 



A SERJIlONv 



DELIVERED AT SHEFFIELD, 



On the First Sabbatli iu January, 1S39, 



WITU REFERENCE TO TUE 



TWEUTir-FIFTK A2rJNriV£RSAIl7 



OF tt^i^a^ior'S settlement in that place. 



BY%.:?in^ BRA]>FORI>, 




pastor of TmcONliREGATIONAL CHURCH. 



piTTsriSSLD : 

PRINTED BY PHI^EH.\S ALLEN AND SON. 










1 



NOTE. 



This Discourse is given to the public in compliance with a request frora 

A COMMITTEE OF THE ClIURCH. 



I,0y 



A REVIEW OF THE PAST, 



ECCLESIASTES iii. 15. 
God requjreth that which is past. 

If indeed, as the pious poet has well said, " 'Tis 
greatly wise to talk with our past liours^ and ask 
them what report they bore to heaven," surely it is 
the part of wisdom to review our past years^ and 
enquire what is their record concerning us in the 
remembrance of Him from whom we received them, 
and who will require them all at our hands. The 
past, my friends, the pnst^ ah ! it is not, as too oft- 
en imagined, it is not vanished and annihilated as 
a dream when one awaketh. With all its blessings, 
and privileges, and warnings, the past is in the eye 
of God as though it were present; and shall return 
again, and be exhibited before his throne, where 
we shall all be assembled to meet it, answer for it, 
and receive according to its testimony. 

The stream of life has borne us all, through va- 
rious scenes, steadily and directly towards the close 
of time and the awards of eternity. We have just 
closedj not only another year o{ our short and uii- 



certain pilgrimage on eartb, but have also recently 
come to the close of Hventy-jive years since the 
connexion between this church and people and their 
present minister was consummated :* and is it not 
well to grasp a few fleeting moments, and ekvate 
them to a serious review of the past, to an exam- 
ination of the report which this considerable por- 
tion of our short life has faithfully and impartially 
borne to heaven ? " God reqiiirelh tliat which is 
past :" were it not so, then the past might be bu- 
ried in oblivion, and no essential injury accrue to 
us. But God, from whom we have received exist- 
ence, and every blessing, and to whom we are ac- 
countable, " God requires the past ;" and our inter- 
ests for eternity are inevitably involved in our re- 
gard to it. With deep attention, then, let us now 

I. Eeview the past. 

God, the infinite Spirit, orders and controls the 
affairs of men according to the dictates of his un- 
fathomable wisdom and holiness. In our review, 
therefore, we are not to lay an imdue stress upon 
our own wisdom and exertions, nor attribute to 
our friends and enemies the good and evil of which 
they have been only instrumental. Nor has for- 
tune^ or chance, or accident any thing to do in our 
concerns : but these, so far as they have any mean- 
ing, are only names for the indefinable operations 



* October 13th, 1813. The want of health prevented the preparation and 
delivery of this Discourse in October, 1838. 



of Divine Providence. It is true indeed that " A 
" man's heart devisetli his way, hut the Lorti direct- 
'• eth his steps." " Kvery .qood gift, and every per- 
" feet gilt is from ahnve^ and eometh down from 
'• the Fdth i of lighlsy 

God made ns, and not we ourselves : and he ma'^e 
us rational^ tluis elevating us ahove all his other 
creatures on earth ; and immortnU destining us to 
a more exalted existence in another world, capahle 
of knowing, serving, and enjoying him forever. 

The time of our hir h, when means of instruc- 
tion, and for the attainment of useful knowledge, 
were so ahundant in the world, is worthy of spe- 
cial notice : and the place of our birth too, in this 
land of civil liberty, and literary light, with all the 
facilities for the improvement of the mind, and 
preparation for usefulness and enjoyment, that we 
could reasonably desire 

Our preserv'ition^ during the feeble and helpless 
state of infancv, in v\ hich so many tender buds are 
blighted, and which so many myriads never survive, 
is a distinguishing favor from Him in whom " we 
aU live, and move, and have our being." In the 
season of giddy childhood, and heedless youth, and 
all the way onward to the present time, has God 
preserved an I sustained us ; rescuing us from un- 
seen dangers; deliverin.^us from exposures ; shield- 
ing us from diseases, and recovering us from th^ ir 
fatal influence ; continuing to us our reason ; sup- 
plying us with genuine and steadfast friends ; and 
from da}^ to day, and from year to year, providing 



for our returning wants, with more than a parent's 
assiduity, liherality, kindness and care. 

If we consider in what a dying world we live* 
we shall be amazed at the distinguishing goodness 
of God in sparing us, while so many have been re- 
moved, on every side of us. 

*« Death rides on every passing breeze, 
«• And lurks in every flower ; 
" Each season has its own disease, 
*' Its peril every hour"— 

and still we live. 

JLmong ourselves death has not ceased his work 
a single year since we were born, and but seldom 
a single month. Here the tyrant has triumphed 
over the aged and the young, the prosperous and 
the adverse, the virtuous and the vicious, laying his 
victims promiscuously in the dust. Oh ! what nu- 
merous monuments rise over the cold bosoms that 
once beat high with affection for us ; over those 
who shared our friendship, our counsels, our pur- 
suits, our sorrows, and our joys ! 

During the last year only, thirttMune of our kin- 
dred and acquaintance here have been numbered 
with the dead : and during the twenty -Jive years 
past^ seven hundred and fifteen^ out of a population 
of about two thousand and Jive hundred^ have 
passed away into the unseen world. There is not 
a neighborhi od,nor but a very few families, in this 
place, in which I have not been called to officiate 
on funeral occasions : in many neighborhoods I 
have been very often, and often in the same fami- 
lies Of these seven hundred and fifteen, eighty- 



nine were persons of color : three Imndred and sioj" 
ty-six were males^ and three hundred and forty* 
nine were females^ Under one year of age were 
eighty-four ; bettveen one and ten were one hundred 
and thirty-five; betzveen ten and twenty "^^^r^ fifty- 
one ; bettveen twenty and thirty \Tere siMyfive ; 
bettveen thirty and forty \Yere siccty ; betti^een for- 
ty and fifty were forty-seven ; bettveen fifty and 
sijrty were forty-eight ; bettveen sixty and seventy 
were seventy-nine ; between seventy and eighty 
were eighty-ttvo ; bettveen eighty and ninety were 
fifty ; bettveen ninety and one hundred were ttvelve ; 
and over one hundred Avere two.^ The average 
number o^' deaths annually is a little more than 
twenty-eight. The greatest number that have died 
in any one year^ for twenty-five years past, i^ fifty- 
six ; which was in 1814, the first year of my niin- 



* Oue of these was a female of color, respecting whom little is known. The 
other was Mrs Sarah Smith, the widow of Deacon Ebenezer Smith. She was 
born in Boston, Mass. She died the Gth of January, 1822, at the advanced 
age of orfe hundred and two years and four months. She settled here under 
the ministry of the Rev. JMr. Hubbard, the first Pastor of this Church, and liv- 
ed eight years after the settlement of the present Pastor ; during which time 
she frequently attended public ordinances at the Sanctuary. She was a pro- 
fessor of religion more than seventy years ; and to those who were best ac- 
quainted with her daily walk and conversation, she appeared a devoted chris- 
tian, " shining brighter and brighter to the perfect day." On the expiration of 
an hundred years from her birth, which was on the 18th of September, 1819, 
the Pastor preached an appropriate Sermon at her residence, at which time she 
appeared a remarkable instance, not only of mental vigor, but of genuine de- 
votedness to God ; ardently desiring, but calmly waiting, for a glorious entrance 
into rest ; expecting it only through the infinite atonement of the Lord Jesus 
Christ. On this interesting occasion many were ready to say of this aged and 
eminent christian — 

*' Thee we congratulate : content, 

" Should propitious heaven design, 

*' Life for us as wisely spent, 

" Though but half the length of thine.'' 



8 

istry- la that year a fatal epidemic prevailed in 
this town and vicinity. Many \vere hurried away 
by death in a very unusual manner: numbers trom 
the same neighborhood, and two or three from the 
same family in rapid succession. Great alarm and 
solicitude at this time pervaded the public mind ; 
and iu view of this desolating judgment, on the 23d 
of March, in accordance with a previous vote of (he 
Church, they assembled in the house of God, with 
their families and many of the people, and spent 
the day in humiliaticm and prayer : and, account 
for it as we may, it is a Inct, that from that time, 
the plague was stayed, and the voice of health a- 
gain ^^enerally heard in our habitations The least 
number of deaths in any one year was sixteen, 
and that in the year 1816. The longest season in 
which during the last twenty-five years, there has 
been no instance of mortality among us, is three 
months and fourteen days, viz from the 28th of 
May to the 11th of September, 1824. 

Within the twenty five ^ears past ninety-one 
members of the Church, including three Deacons.^' 
have here finished their earthly |»ilg!image. As 
nearly as can be ascertained, of the eiiihty-Jit^e be- 
longing to this Church at the time of my settle- 
raient, but twenty jive yet remain alive, and but e- 
leven are now living among us, and seven only of 
these, including two Deacons, are able to be abroad 



* Aaron Foot, who died in 1822 ; Jonathan Hubbard, son of the first Pas. 
tor, who died in 1825 ; and Hosmer Kellogg, who died in J 836. 



and meet us in our assemblies ; and all of these 
eleven are close on the verge of the grave. Of the 
seven hundred and fifteen deaths, about thirty have 
transpired under circumstances pecuharly afflict- 
ing. Three have died instantly ; sijc have been 
suddenly killed ; four have died in consequence of 
clothes taking fire ; three by bein^^ scalded ; five 
have been droivned : tivo were found dead in the 
field ; three \y eve found dead in their bed ; one was 
killed by the hand of another ; and three, deprived 
of the regular exercise of their reason, were re- 
moved by their orvn act. 

Another thing, peculiarly interesting, and ad- 
monitory to myself, at least, 1 would not pass un- 
noticed. On the council for my ordination, there 
were itvelve pastors of Churches, all but one of this 
County * Four only of these twelve are yet liv- 
ing ; and but two\ sustain the places they had at 
the time of my settlement. 

Now amidst so many instances of mortality, and 
so many of ditTerent ages and conditions, how won- 
derful is it that rve have not been of the number! 
Who but God has made us to differ from those who 
have gone before us to their final account? 

But our review of the past must not be limited 
to the considei*ation of creating and preserving 
goodness ; it should extend alsj especially to the 



* Dr Stephen West, Moses Bradford of New Hampshire, Jacob Catlin, AI- 
van Hyde, Samuel Shepard, Levi White, Eb-^nezer Jennings, Elijah Wheeler, 
Joseph L. Mills, Thomas Punderson, Joseph W. Dow, Sylvester Burt. 

t Dr. Shepard, of Lenox, who has been settled there forty. three years, lastA- 
pril ; and Mr. Mills, of Becket, who was ordained thirty-two years ago, last June. 



10 

contemplation of those blessings which flow only 
through the instrumentality of the Gospel^ and 
Gospel institutions. 

The first settlers of this town, which was pur- 
chased of the natives in 1724, and incorporated in 
1733, were descendants of the pilgrim fathers, and 
possessed of their spirit ; and they made it their 
grand object to provide for the public worship of 
God, and the stated preaching of his word. At 
their ^rsf town meeting, holden on the 16th of 
January, 1733, they voted to erect a Dieeting-house 
and employ a preacher : a preacher was imnudi- 
ately and constantly employed, and the meeting- 
house was built in 1735. In the same year, one 
hundred and three years ago the 22d of October 
last, a Church was first organized liere, with Dan- 
iel Kellogg and Philip Callendar its deacons;* and 
at the same time Mr. Jon ithan Hubbard was con- 
secrated as the first pastor, by an ecclesiastical 
council of ministers and delegates from the then 
neighboring churches, viz. fi*om Litchfield and En- 
field in Connecticut, and from Springfield, North- 
ampton and Sunderland in Massachusetts.! The 



* The wife of Deac. Kellogg was the daughter cf Obadiah Noble, of West- 
field, the first white man who came to reside m Sheffield, He .^.pent the first 
winter of his residence here with no ether associates than the Indians. In the 
spring he went back to Westfield ; and in June he returned, bringing with him 
this daughter, who was the first white woman that eame into the town. She 
travelled from Westfield, more than 40 miles, when about 16 years of age, on 
horseback, bringing a bed with her ; and spent one night in the wilderness, in 
what is now the east part of Tyringham. 

t Timothy Cohens of Litchfield, Peter Reynolds of Enfield, Samuel Hopkins 
cf Springfield, Jonathan Edwards of Northampton, and William Rand of Sun. 
(lerland, were the Pastors on this Council. 



11 

sentiments embraced by the church, and inculcat- 
ed by tlieir spiritual teachers, at the first settlement 
of the town, were strictly evangelical : virtually 
such as have been for many years, and are now, 
embodied in our confession of faith. After about 
tzventy-nine years from his settlement, the Rev. 
Mr. Hubbard, having been dismissed from his pas- 
toral connexion but a few months, was numbered 
with the dead, viz. on the 6th of July, 1765. Be- 
fore his decease, for the better accommodation of 
the people, a new meeting-house was erected, lar- 
ger, more commodious, and more central than the 
first, near the spot on which this house now stands. 
Although the church and people were destitute of 
a settled minister about seven year.^ next succeed 
ing iVIr. Hubbard's decease, jet they were n«t with- 
out the regular administration of the word and or- 
dinances. On the iOth of June, 1772, Mr John 
Keep was ordained p istor of this church ; but his 
ministry was continued only about twelve years, 
lie being removed by death September 3d, 1785, 
in the 36th year of his age. Still religioiis insti- 
tutions were sustained ; and in May, 1791, the 
Bev Ephraiui Judson was installed as the third 
minister : he died on the 28d of February, 1813, 
in the 77th year of his age, and the 23d of his 
ministry. The next week after Mr. Judson's bu- 
rial, the present pastor of the church, by the very 
mysterious operations of Divine Providence, was 
led to this place to preach : and was ordained on 
the i3th of October. 1813 : and, '• having ob- 



12 

tained help of God. he continues to this day." 
Prompted, it is believed, by an increasing regard 
to religious institutions, the people, in the year 
1819. at the expense of more than four thoiisaud 
dollars, removed, enlarged, and extensively repair- 
ed this house ; heautilyingit, and rendering it much 
more convenient than before, by the addition of a 
steeple and btlL* 

In reviewing the past, we perceive that not one 
minister settled liere^ for the space of more than 
one hundred years^ has been sent away from tliis 
people^ or felt himself necessitated to leave them. 
The first minister indeed, hei!5g advanced in years, 
was disconnected from his pastoral relation a few 
months previous lo his decease ; but he found no 
occasion to leave the place : and his remains lie 
here, among those of your fathers, kindred and 
friends ; and so do those of the second minister ; 
and so do those of the tJdrd : they have all lived, 
and labored and died here ; and the present minis- 
ter has been continued till his eyes begin to grow 
dim, and his head is evidently blossoming for the 
tomb Whether this very singular fact testifies 
any, thing in favor <jf the ministers or not, sure I 
am its testimony is much in favor of the church 
and people here. It affords evidence most clear 
and undeniable, that they have not been disputa- 
tious, and contentious, and given to change ; but 



* The people here transacted their ecclesiastical concerns, as a town, till 1825 ; 
since that time, as a matter of convenience, they have transacted them as a 
Society, 



18 

that, on the contrary, they have heen qniet, forbear- 
ing, and stable : and it is believed that this has 
now become a habit so well fixed, that the next 
ininister here, and. it nia\ be. all succeeding min- 
isters, will also have it t»t say, that no pastor of the 
church in Sheffield was sent elsewhere to spend 
his last days, and find his grave. 

Nor should it be overlooked, that, though the 
church has been instituted here more tlutn one 
hundred years^ and the population for ^orty years 
past, at least, has been over two thousavd, spread 
over a territory about ei^^ht miles lona: (nnl six 
broad, and inany have been subjected to considera- 
ble inconvenience in attending public worship at 
the centre, yet no circumstances, in the estimation 
of the church and people, have made it necessary, 
or expedient, to divide, erect a separate place of 
worship, and support an additional teacher. W hat- 
ever, at any time, may have been the wishes or de- 
signs of some, in years gone by, or whatever incip- 
ient measures have been taken, relative to a divis 
ion, all have been so overruled, in the good provi- 
dence of God, that it has never been effected — 
This is another remarkable fact in the ecclesiasti- 
cal history of this church and people, hardly an 
instance like it existing in all New England, if in 
all the land : on the contrary, most towns of the 
dimensions and population of this, having frt'o, and 
some three, and others foier separate places of wor- 
ship ; and yet, in many of them, not one vigorous, 
flourishing society. 



14 

Look now at the salutary injliience of religious 
institutions continued here so uninterruptedly for 
more than a century. Contemplate this influence 
only in relation to present enjoyment in general. 
Survey a moment the state of things, with refer- 
ence to this particular, in those portions of the 
world where these institutions are not possessed. 
Look upon Asia, with its hundreds of millions of 
inhabitants ; upon the interior of x\frica ; upon 
the wilds of North and South- imerica ; and upon 
many of the islands of the seas, all of which are 
filled, not with Gospel institutions, but with a stu- 
pid and debasing idolatry. And look on i urkey, 
and Palestine, and Persia, and Egypt, and Arabia, 
and a portion of Africa, under the iron reign of 
JMohammedan imposture. And look upon Spain, 
and Portugal, and France, and Italy, a portion of 
Germany, South-America, and many other portions 
of the world, where the delusion of Popery pre- 
vails ; a delusion almost as deep and degrading as 
that which reigns over the regions of Mahometan- 
ism, or of heathenism even. Or look at New-Or- 
leans in Louisiana, or Vicksburgh in Mississippi, 
or any other place where the religion of the Bible 
is generally contemned, and its institutions are dis- 
regarded.* In all sucli places ignorance and vice, 
and wretchedness their unfailing associate, reign, in 
an awful measure unchecked and unrebuked. The 



* " Waiter, bring my baggage," said a guest at an Inn in New-Orleans. 
'• Where, and tohat, is your baggage, sir ?" •' It is under my pillow ; three 
pistols, a pack of cards, a bowie knife, and one shiri.^^ 



15 

laws even, where laws exist, are unavailing : for it 
is a truth, tliat the influence of human laws, with 
all their sanations and penalties, without religion, 
cannot effectuallv restrain men : observation and 
expt^rience in all ages and places bear testimony to 
this. And now, what true enjoyment, think ye, 
enjoyment suitable for a rational being, is to be 
had where such a state of things prevails ? And 
why do we differ, as most unquestionably we do, 
relative to our enjoyments, from these portions of 
our world and of our own country even, unless it 
be through the salutary influence of religious in- 
stitutions ? By this influence the mind is enlight- 
ened, the unhallowed passions are restrained, and 
reason and conscience are permitted to sway the 
conduct of men one towards another : and, while 
it turns them from the unrestrained indulgence of 
their corrupt propensities, it prompts them to self- 
respect, to industry and sobriety, to kindness and 
good-will towards each other, and thus, in modes 
innumerable, greatly promotes and perpetuates 
their enjoyments. 

This too promotes prosperity in the common 
pursuits of life. Ordinarily a people who sustain 
religious institutions thrive faster, on tlie whole, 
accumulate more of this world's goods, other things 
being equal, notwithstanding all the expense of 
supporting them, than those who have no such in- 
stitutions. Where their influence is not felt, it 
costs more, tenfold more, to support the crimes 
and their consequences that prevail, than it would 



16 

to support the Gospel. My hearers, be assured 
that a people cannot afford, in a pecuniary point 
of view J they cannot atlbrd to do without religious 
institutions. ! know that some, in all the towns 
of New-England, some among ourselves, consider 
it burdensome to share in ihe expense of support- 
ing them ; and some too who are accurate calcu- 
lators : but have they ever calculated how much 
more burdensome it would be to support the ex- 
travagancies, the follies, and the vices, which, with- 
out the influence of these institutions, would in- 
crease and prevail, and inevitably lay upon them a 
tax almost intolerable ? If any doubt the position I 
here assume,let them dispose of their estates and re- 
move to a place where there is no meeting-house, no 
minister, no Sabbath, no Sabbath School, no relig- 
ious means whatever ; and let them remain there 
^re years, or one year only, and then returu. and say 
honestly, that it is ch uper and better to do without 
Gospel institutions, and 1 will acknowledge that 1 
may be in an error. My hearers, destroy this pleas- 
ant house to-morrow ; and to-morrow tell your min- 
ister you have no further need of his services; and 
dispense with the annual payment of seven hundred 
dollars for the support of Gospel institutions; and 
inform your children aisd the rising generation a- 
bout you, that the first day of every week is a holi- 
day, and, employ it as they will, they need fear no 
more the frown of God or man. How long, think 
ye, before you would need a house Zarg'er than this, 
to accommodate the throng of wretched paupers 



i1 

and their families, made so by tlieir crimes ; and 
a sum quadruple to that now paid for Gospel in- 
stitutions for their support? How long before, by 
the increase of idleness, intemperance, gambling, 
licentiousness, and general dissipation and crime, 
and the decreased value of your farms, you would 
know and feel, to your sorrow, that you had made 
a foolisli bargain ? How long before every pioiis 
person, yea, and every sober, industrious citizen^ 
would feel he could not live in the place, and hast- 
en out of it? And how long before another pious, 
or even decent^ individual would come in to take up 
his abode with you, though he could have given 
him the very best estate among you ? It cannot 
be disputed, by any who will view the subject in its 
true Vv^hU that the influence of the Gospel is fa- 
vorable to the temporal prosperity of men : that 
it has been, and is so, to you, my hearers, as a com- 
munity, you cannot doubt. ^ 

And is not the same true in relation to morals? 
" Morals ! morals !" 1 seem to hear some exclaim, 
'• where are the morals of a people more corrupt, 
" than among ourselves, notwithstanding ihe inflii- 
*• ence of religious institutions ?" In many places, 
I reply ; though it must be conceded they are lam- 
entably corrupt here. Profanity, licentiousness, 
intemperance, Sabbath breaking, gambling, and 
their kindred iniquities, exist here, yes, here among 
ourselves ! ! What then ? Is it therefore true that 
the influence of Gospel institutions is inefficacious 
on the morals of men ? All this immorality exists 



IB 

here, in despite of these institutions ; and if it e^- 
ist now, under the restraints of Gospel truth, O5 
how would it flourish, and thrive, and grow rank^^ 
and become past endurance, were these restraints 
all removed ! ! Now it is coniined to, comparative- 
ly^ a few ; and, compavativelij. done in tlie dark, 
and in corners ; then it would be practised bj the 
most^ and stalk forth unblushirjgly into open day, 
and forcibly obtrude itself upon the observation of 
every passing^ stranger, and none would escape its 
destructive influence. 

Unless I very greatly err, there has been, on the 
whole, an increased regard to religious institutions 
here, within the twenty-five years past ; and I think 
it will be conceded, by every accurate and candid 
observer, that the morals of the people, however 
corrupt they may be now, have generally improv- 
ed, and that too in no trifling measure. 

As these institutions have been continued and 
prospered, so the number of professedly pious per- 
sons has increased : and, notwithstanding all the 
defections in the church, and there will be defec- 
tions while man is depraved and fallible, by which 
merals even, as well as religion, are outraged and 
trampled upon ; still, a church, in proportion to 
its sound and faithful members, is always exercis- 
ing a healthful influence in community — an influ- 
ence clearly perceptible upon the morals of the 
people. The direct influence put forth by this 
church in favor of morals, by the distribution of 
trftcfs, and by their early recommendation of the 



19 

temperance pledge, which has been, and is felt by 
many individuals and families among us; and that 
connected with Sabbath Schools^ continued from 
year to year, for many years past, bearing upon the 
feelings and conduct of such numbers of the ris- 
ing generation, is an influence which by no means 
ought to be overlooked. Indt^ed the church, with- 
out anij other organization than it has already, be- 
ing obligated by bonds which cannot be made 
stronger, will, as the members are faithful, set their 
faces against all immorality, of every name and 
every form. 

Most undeniable then is it, that religious insti- 
tutions are ai)ove all pi ice as it legards the tempo- 
ral good of individuals and communities : and a 
Secretary of the Home Missionary Society, writing 
while on a tour among the new settlements at the 
West, strikingly substantiates the fact, that dis- 
criminating and judicious men of the wor^ld feel 
and acknowledge it. He says : 

" Even the never-failing theme of *' the currency'^'' is scarcely more frequent 
*=* in men's mouths, in the circles where I have moved, than the question, 
*• Wh>'re can we get a good minister ?" This *' is not the result," he adds, 
*• of purely a religious feeling ; even worldly men, who have any regard to the 
^' authority of law, and the dfcencies of society, are convinced that an evangel- 
" ical, permanent ministry, is essential to the life that now is, as well as that 
'• which is to come." 

But the salutary influence of religious institu- 
tions, relatn'e to spiriliial interests^ especially de- 
mands our notice. The doctrines and precepts of 
the Gospel have been unceasingly dispensed to the 
dying and accountable population here, from the 
beginning. During the twenty-five years past the 



20 

church and people Iiave had thirteen hiivdred Sah^ 
baths ; and on those and other occasions, within 
the same period, the pastor has delivered among 
them about two thousand and Jive hundred written 
Discourses, including hQtwGen three and four hiui' 
dred on funeral occasions^ besides m?iny unwritten, 
Numbers also have been preached by others, par- 
ticularly during the absence and ilhiess of the pas- 
tor, in times of sp^ cia! revival, and on many other 
occasions ; so that not less than three thousand 
Gospel sermons have been delivered here within 
the quarter of a century past : nor have they been, 
through the agency of the Divine Spirit, without 
saving effect upon the hearts and lives of many. 
Besides those who have been essentially benefitted, 
that were not numbered with the visible church 
here, many have been led to acknowledge openly^ 
in a public profesnion^ their attachment to the re- 
ligion of Christ, or the number that constituted 
the church at the time of its organization, and the 
additions made to it previous to V!r. Judson's min- 
istry, there are no records : during his ministry 
sij[:ty were added. At the time of my settlement 
there were in this church eighty-five me nbers.--- 
During the twenty-five years past four hundred 
and thirty-sijc have been added ; three hn dred and 
fifty-four fy profession^ the others by letter : and 
five hundred and thirty-one have b en baptised; 
one hundred and seventy -two adults and three hun- 
dred and fifty-nine children. After deducting 
ninety-one removed by death, sei^en by excommu- 



n 

nication, and one himdred and eighty -two by dis- 
mission to other chuiTlus, there yet remain two 
hundred and forty-one, nearly tliree times the 
number belonging to the church in 18 1>^.* 

Tlie years 1814, '15 and '16 were remarkable for 
tlie interest I'elt among the people here relative to 
the salvation ot the soul. During ihat period there 
were added to the church ninety-seven members ; 
in 1814 twenty ; in 1815 twenty-one ; in 1816 fifty- 
sia^. Another like season commenced in 1821, 
while the pastor was delivering a connected series 
of doctrinal discourses, and extended into 1823 ; 
during wliich one hundred and fifty -eighty siccty 
of whom were heads of families, were admitted ; 
?ii»e(//-)ti?/f of them on the same day ^\vl. May 22d, 
1822 ; fifty-six of whom took upon them the seal 
of the covenant in the ordinance of baptism. An- 
other like season occurred in 1827, the fruits of 
which were thirty five ^AA^i A to the church. Again 
in 1831 the Spirit of the Most High visited us, 
and fi'ty nine were added : in 1836 tivelve, and 
fifteen m 1838.t 



* Of this number thirty are abspnt. and twenty jive are confined, or prevented 
from attending public ordinances, by the infirmities of age and disease, 

tTbe revival of 1821, '22 and '23 was preceded, or i-ather commenced, by 
the admission of two men, living in different parts of the town, one of them a- 
ged eighty five and the other aev^^^nti/six Thr- youngest individual admitted was 
thirteen years old. No specially new means, or measures, were employed for 
the production of these peculiar seasons The church was first aroused, and 
humbled, and quickened to prayer and eifort, under the ordinary administr itiorfc 
of the truth. Then indeed they resorted to seasons of fasting and prayer, and 
religious conference, and greater fidelity towards the thoughtless ; and in pro- 
portion to their humility and activity in duty the work progressed among 
the people. Neighboring pastors indeed have been invited to come in and la. 



22 

How many of the whole niimher admitted to the 
church in these seasons, were really new creatures 
in Christ Jesus, the judgment d'<\\ wi!l tell ; hut that 
the institutions of the Gospel, througli the ahiii^^hty 
energies of the Holy Ghost sent down from heav- 
en, have been instrujuental here of the renewal of 
many hearts, and the sanctification of many lives, 
not the bitterest enemy of our holy religion among 
us will soberly deny If they have not produced 
all that has been cl dmeil^ all that has been profess- 
ed even, yet they have produced much ; that even 
which, in many instances, will be found in the end 
more valuable than empires, more valuable than 
worlds. 

Look also at the salutary influence of Gospel in- 
stitutions here for twentv-five years jiast, through 
the instrumentality (tf thase who h ive felt their 
power. Nearly two hundred individuals who have 
gone out from us are scattered abroad in eight dif- 
ferent States; and, in proportion as they are faith- 
ful to their covenant vows, and actuated by the spir- 
it of their Divine Master, they are giving their in- 
fluence to the cause of virtue and piety among their 
fellow-men Of tliese, eight, from a neighboring 
town, where the Congregational Church had be- 
come utterly extinct, and where the pastor of this 



bor ; and there has been one, and but one, protracted meeting, and that but of 
four days, among us, which was in 1831 ; but that was not had till the spirit of 
the Lord was evidently moving on the hearts of numbers, especially among the 
members of the B ble das-, then consisting of one hundred and sixty, of 
which about forty expressed a hope of renewing grace. 



23 

elnirch frequently labored, who first united with 
us. ue dismissed together, to be organized with 
others into a church there. Two of these* have 
been, for many years, deacons ot that church, now 
consisting of more than sijrtij members, and their 
inflnence in the cause of truth and hohness has 
already been ielt by many, and, it is believed, %vUl 
he felt by vmwe in future generations. Through 
their example and efforts, and that of others, and 
especially of devoted pastors, the church continaes, 
a light and a blessing to many around them. God 
grant it may never be without faithful ministers 
and members, by whose pi avers and labors a life- 
giving influence may go forth to every generation, 
down to the end of time. 

Five individuals who first stood as professors of 
religion in this church.f withm the twenty-five 3 ears 
past have become preachers of those doctrines they 
here professed : and one other.J eminently promi- 
sing, has been prevented fj-om entering on tf.e same 
work only bv the arrest of deaths while but just ia 
the b^oom and vigor of hi-* days. 

Prompted by the influence of the Gospel, the 
ehurch has paid, within twenty-five years past, out 
of the Church Treasury^ exclusive or* the expense 



* Andrew Bacon and Stephen Carver, of Egremont. The venerable Aaron 
K inne was pre-eminently instrumental in the re establishment of Gospel insti- 
tutions in Egreraont. 

t Chester Dewey, formerly a professor in Williams College ; Loring D Dew- 
ey ; Cyrus Byington, now missionary among the Choctaws ; Norman Kellogg, 
now in Michigan \ and E W. Kellogg, at Auburn. 

X Comfort Sparks, a graduate at Williams, and a beneficiary of the American 
ITducation Societv. 



k 



24 

of their commiiiiion seasons, for their poor, for the 
aid of pious ^oiing men preparing for tlie ministry^ 
for 8abbath school books and other pubhcations 
for the promotion of truth and holiness, and for 
the snpplj of the desk daring tiie pastor's illness 
and absence, about four hmidred dollm'S : and, in 
connexion witii the prople, s nee tae jear 1825,111 
addition to what they had previously done for the 
same or similar objects, to aid the designs of the 
American Bible, and Foreign Missionary Societies, 
ab?>ut three thousand dollars, and much for the ob« 
jects of the Education, Bome Missionary, Tract, 
Seaman's Friend, Ctlonization, and Sabbath School 
Societies ; and something for many other objects 
of benevolence. For the last three years, the con- 
tributions in the congregation for the various ob- 
jects have 5)een about thirteen hundred dollars^ay- 
eraglng over four hundred a year. 

In connexion with these efforts of a pecuniary 
natnre, prayers for the prosperity of Zion have Itere 
ascended; particuhirly in the monthly concert, com- 
menced in accordance with a vote of the church, 
September 1st, 18 15, and hrld at the commence- 
lueiU of each month to the present time, and at the 
annual season of prayer for the seminaries of learn- 
ing, besides other ordinary and extraordinary sea- 
sons.* 

Some years since the church pledged itself, by 



* Thursday evening of each week has been observed as a season of prayer, cs. 
pecially for Divine injiuences upon this church and people, for more thaa 30 years. 



r 



25 

a formal vote, to sustain the Sabbath School in this 
congregation, which it has since clone from jearto 
year, and which, in some of the last seasons, has 
contained between two and three /iwnrfrerf scholars ; 
under six male, including the pastor, and six fe- 
male superintendants, with a librarian and secretary, 
and betivecn thirty and forty teachers. Connected 
with it is a library, replenished from time to time 
by the united contributions of the church and con- 
gregation, consisting of from seven to nine hundred 
books. A Bible class has ilso been sustained by 
the pastor of the church, during the winter season, 
at tiie mtermission of the public exercises, for nine 
years^ consisting of from ont hundred and Jifty to 
two hundred individuals, of all age«i,over ten years. 
Such, in the review, i^ the past: and now, " God 
requireth that which is past." Consider then, 

II. What becomes us in view of God's past 
dealings with us ? 

Surely we must feel that there is an imperious 
demand upon us for gratitude. 

If we consider only the er^^i^??^ and presei^ing 
goodness of God towards us, out of what rock 
must that heart be formed which does not melt 
with grateful emotions towards our b« untiful and 
unwearied Benefactor 1 

But how much greater occasion for gratitude 
have we that our lot has fallen where the onty rem-- 
ed for the ignorance and misery of man, the glo- 
rious Gospel, with iis wise institutions and happy 



li 



26 

influences, has been had from the fii st settlement 
of the place : where one generation after another 
has felt its power, in restraining the unhallowed 
passions of men, in checking vice and prompting 
to virtue, and in making men, comparatively, so- 
ber, industrious, forbearing, and affectionate ; and 
thus securing an exalted measure of temporal 
prosperity and rational enjoyment. Is there not 
a call ap(m us too for unfeigned thanksgiving to 
God, that this church and people have been so 
little given to change relative to their religious 
teachers ; thus avoi ling contention, unnecessary 
expense, and evils innumerable ? — and that they 
have been blessed with such a degree of p^ace and 
union as to continue to this day in one society ? 
Look at places where it has not been thus. What 
heart-risings, what feuds, what protracted and ex- 
pensive litigations even, have often arisen in con- 
nexion and in consequence ! — -and how difficult, in 
many instances, for either of the divisions to sup- 
port the regular administration of the Gospel \ — 
JJnion^ my friends, union is strength ; and other 
things being equal, it is full ot blessings. Not in- 
deed that union is to be secured at the sacrifice of 
truth and duty : for there may be, there are^ cir- 
cumstances, in which it is not only expedient, but 
obligatory, on a church and people to divide ; but 
it is unwise, because exceedingly injurious, only for 
some comparatively trifling reasons, to do this: 
and this church and people have great occasion for 
gratitude that cii'cum stances have never been per* 



27 

tnitted here to arise which rendered it necessary 
for them to divide into separate societies. 

But God has not only given and continued unin- 
terruptedly the means of grace here, but has ac- 
companied these means with the efficacious influ- 
ences of his Spirit. For these influences, christian 
friends, you sighed, you prayed, you importuned 
and agonized in prayer, with many bitter cries and 
tears. And when the blessing seemed to delay, 
putting yourselves in the dust deeper, and still 
deeper, you persevered in prayer ; and eventually 
it went up to tlie throne of the eternal God, and 
he came by the energies of his Spirit, comforting 
and encouraging his people, bowing the hearts of 
sinners, and bringing great companies of old and 
young to subscribe with their hands to the Lord. 
Oh ! what scenes were these ! And can we review 
them, and not have our hearts fill, and expand, and 
overflow, with gratitude ? Especially those, who, 
in these seasons, or in any season [[for the time of 
the convei'sion of one soul is a season of the Spir- 
it's work] were made subjects of renew ing grace, 
are under peculiar obligations. And how do such 
view the past ? Oh ! think in what state G«id found 
you ! " Look unto the rock whence ye were hewn, 
and to the hole of the pit whence ye were digged;'* 
and contemplate that matchless grace which open- 
ed your eyes upon your guilt and ruin, and led you 
to submit at the feet of Jesus. What has the past 
been to you, but a season of the richest blessings ? 
a season of awakening from your long sleep of 



28 

death ; of redemption from the reigning power of 
sin in your sou! ; of deliverance from the curse of 
God's violated law and from endless perdition : a 
season in which a sense of pardon, peace and joy 
sprung up in your soul ; and hope, through the 
merits of a redeeming God, shed light and glory 
on your future path, and afforded you blessed an^ 
ticipations of eternal felicity in heaven ? Now, 
^' God requires that which is past ;" and can you 
forget your obligations, or fail to exert all your 
powers to live up to them ? 

If we think also of the good of others^ and recal 
the numbers who have gone out from us, not only 
as preachers of the Gospel, but likewise as private 
christians, and their salutary influence upon their 
fellow-men : if we consider the sums contributed 
to do good both at home and abroad, especially to 
give the word of God and the messages of salva- 
tion to the destitute and to the heathen, and scat- 
ter light, and trutb, and holiness throughout the 
land and the world : andcontemplate the hundreds 
of youth and children instructed in the Bible Class 
and Sabbath School : and, in short, survey all the 
blessed means and influences, which have been ex- 
perienced by us, and through us, by others; when 
we recal, and duly consitler, these things, I say, 
well may we call upon our souls, and all that is 
within us, to bless and praise the Lord. For tru- 
ly living for thcbe ends, we live to some good pur- 
pose ; — for our own good, the good of others, andj 
above all, for the glory of the Triune God. 



29 

On a review of the past there is a call upon uSj 
not for gratitude only, but also for humiliation. 

In view of the mercies, and privileges, and op- 
portunities, vouchsafed us, the very best even, those 
who have made the most improvement, may well 
take to themselves shame and confusion of face 
before God What progress, christian friends, 
with all our means and privileges, ought to have 
been made ere this, in personal holiness, benefitting 
the community, and glorifying God, beyond any 
thing that has been so much as attempted! Is not 
obligation augmented in proportion to privileges 
and opportunities communicated? Oh ! what oc- 
casion then is there for deep and undissembled hu- 
miliation before God, that we have lived so much 
for ourselves ; that we have been no more abun- 
dant in prayer and efforts for our own good and the 
good of others; that the church and the world are 
no more benefitted by our being m them ; that the 
honor of God, our Benefactor, and of Christ, who 
died to redeem us, has been no nearer our heart ; 
and that, going as we soon are, into the presence 
of our Judge, we can give no better account of our 
stewardship ! 

But have any employed nil the bounties of God's 
providence to their own gratification, and entirely 
misim proved the price put into their hands to ob- 
tain divine wisdom, surely the review to such ought 
to be most humiliating and heart breaking. My 
dear hearers, '• God requires that which is past ;" 
the past mercies abused ^ the past means misim- 



30 

proved ; the past seasons lost : the past instruc- 
tions unheeded ; the p^st warni gs disregarded ; 
the past strivings of the spirit resisted ; the past 
opportunities of doing good to yourselves, your 
families and fellow creatures neglected ; the past 
obligations to honor God, and to glorify Christ, 
who shed his blood for your redemption, slighted. 
Oh ! think again, I entreat you think agnin ! — 
Within the twenty-five years past only, thirteen 
hundred Sabbaths^ with all their opportunities for 
good, have gone before to testify against you ; and 
three thoiif^nnd Gospel sermons are recorded in the 
book of God's remembrance to be accounted for 
in the final day; and seven huridred calls from the 
coffins and the ^rares of departed relatives and ac- 
quaintance, with opportunities innumerable, in 
which you might in which you ought to, have done 
good, by your example, your property, and your 
prayers, are registered against you ; and in addi- 
tion, all the cominon mercies of God's providence, 
and the sins of your whole life. And now I ask, 
with the sincerest desire for your best, your eter- 
nal good, how you expect to meet all this ? Meet 
it*you must : and have you not, in the review, oc- 
casion for the deepest remor e, and the most pro- 
found humiliation before God ? 

On a review of the past there is, moreover, 
ground for encouragement. 

As God has kindly preserved us, and provided 
for us hitherto, so we may well confide in his good 
providence for time to come. As to the precious 



31 

influence of religious institutions, may we not still 
expect its continuance ? True indeed there have 
been times here in former years, and within twen- 
ty-five years past, wlien dark and portentous clouds 
hovered ovt-r us, and lowering tempests threatened 
us ; but God interposed and scattered them : and 
still— 

" The Lord can clear the darkest skies, 
•' Can give us day for night ; 
" Make drops of sacred sorrow rise, 
** To rivers of delight." 

One hundred and three years, notwithstanding 
all the imperfections, errors and sins of his people ; 
and all the apathy, neglect and hostility of the ir- 
religious ; and all the defects, inefficiency and in- 
terruptions in the ministry ; and all the changes 
in hicution and the rivages of death among the 
members of the church and of community; — one 
hundred and three years, even from the first set- 
tlement of the place, has God sustained his cause 
here. Many a time indeed has the bush been in 
flames, but has never been consumed ; many a time 
has the bark been tossed on the tempestuous 
waves, but has always safely out-rode the storm ; 
many a time has the spark been in the ocean, but 
has always been kept alive : and shall we now, or 
at any future time of darkness and doubt, distrust 
God, and hano^ our harps on the willows in des- 
pair ? Assuredly not. Kind parents may indeed 
forget, " yet I will not forget thee^^ says Zion's 
King : " behold I have graven thee upon the palms 



32 

^' of my hands ; thy walls are continually before 
" me ; thy children shall not make haste ; thoii 
" shalt be called, sought oiiL a city not forsakenJ^ 
Only let the friends of Christ, and of religious in- 
stitutions, be faithful, ever remembering that God 
works by meaus^ and they may confi» ently rely on 
the Lord in the darkest tiuies, assured that his 
cause shall be sustained, and his institutions be 
here coutinn^^i, and tiieir salutary influence be felt, 
onward, from generation to generation, even to the 
latest and the last. 

Nor is there any ground of despondency to those 
even who have misim proved their means of good, 
unless indeed they are resolved to continue their 
present course unchanged till death. From past 
forbearance and long-suffering in God, you may 
yet have hope respecting the future^ if you will 
but arise and act. " Vs I live, siuli the Lord, I 
"* have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but 
'^ that the wicked turn from his evil vny and live." 
You have then, my dear he uvrs, stJI h space for 
turning to God, v/ith repentance, faith and new o- 
bedience ; but it is the onlij space you can have. 
Oil ! lose not this, lest you each be constrained in 
the end to adopt, with unutterable anguish, the sad 
lamentation, '^ The harvest is past, the summer is 
ended, and I am not saved." 

Such is the past ; and such the gratitude, the 
humiliation, and the encouragement demanded of 
us in view oi it. Permit now a few 



33 

I. To the Church. 

God has placed you, christian friends, in a sta- 
tion of great responsibility. Much, rery much, 
depends on you., under God, for the continuance 
of Gospel institutions here, not for twt nty-five, or 
one hundred years to come, only, but during fu- 
ture generations down to the end of time. Then 
look well both to jour faith and your practice. — 
Adhere to the doctrines you profess to believe, as 
expressed in your confession of faith, ^vithout wa- 
vering ; for they are, most manifestly, the very 
truths of God. 

Cultivate a spirit of love one towards another^ 
and harmouy among yourselves, A remarkable 
degree of kind feeling, peace, and concord, has 
hitherto prevailed in this church, at least for the 
twenty-five years past ; and it is of the utmost 
importance to preserve it. Then be not distant 
and cold in your intercourse with each other, nor 
seek out and magnify one another's faults : and 
especially let not a part of the church adopt new 
and doubtful experiments for doing good even, in 
opposition to the opinion of the other part, and 
particularly of the older and more experienced 
viemberb This is a fruitful source of mischief at 
the present day in various portions of our land : 
and has done more to divide and break up church- 
es, to distract and dismiss ministers, and dissipate 
and destroy the good influence of religious institu- 



34 

tions, than almost every thing hesides. Even 
when the object to be attained is acknowledged by 
all to be, in itself^ good and vastly important, yet 
the mode of securing it may be very objectionable. 
And if it be so really, or not, yet if it be so in (he 
opinion of a considerable portion of the chnrch^ 
then the prosecution of the object in that mode 
will most assuredly result in mutual coldness, and 
recrimination, and finally in open and distressing 
divisions. I am indeed no prophet ; nor does it 
demand a prophet's ken to foretel this event, for 
who has not seen it in numberless instances ? I 
do therefore now most solemnly charge you, breth- 
ren ; and I do most solemnly charge you, sisters ; 
to guard against this root of bitterness, and beware 
of thus doing any thing to break, or mar even, this 
golden chain of peace and union. Be not hasty 
to emhrace new things, or adopt new modes of do- 
ing^good. Listen to the divine word, which says, 
" Stand ye in the old ways, and see and ask for the 
" old paths, where is the good way, and walk ye 
" therein, and ye &hall find rest for your souls/' 
Study, and labor, and pray much and long, and 
make sacrifices of feeling, yea, of every thing but 
known duty, to " keep the unity of tlie spirit in 
the bond of peace." Without this, religious insti- 
tutions, if continued, wilt lose much of their ener- 
gy and salutary influence ; and eventually it will 
he written upon your walls, in broad and blazing 
characters, " Thy glory is departed.^^ 

Be faithfxd in the execution of discipline. Ee- 



35 

ligion ill its purity will not long flourish, nor exist 
even, where the laws of Christ for the regulation 
of his house are unexecuted. And forget not that 
every individual member of the church is solemn- 
ly bound by his covenant to aid in this duty, " ac- 
cording to liis capacity, opportunity and station." 

Maintain a faithful observance of the means of 
grace. On this depends, instrumentally, your own 
advancement in knowledge and holiness ; and it is 
demanded of you, for the good of others, and the 
glory of God. Then duly observe the Sabbath^ 
nor let trifles even keep you from a regular at-* 
tendance upon the worahip of God at his house.-^ 
Read daily the divine word ; neglect not the clos^ 
et ; sustain the family altar ; and strive to keep a- 
live religion in your own soul, and honor and ad- 
vance it among those around you, by serious and 
devout conversation on all suitable occasions. 

Seek also for revivals of pure religion ; with 
these the prosperity of the church is intimately 
connected : but seek them only in strict accord- 
ance with the word of God. 

Forget not him who 2^, or who may he^ over you 
in the Lord ; but " esteem him very highly in 
love," if not for his own sake, yet " for his work's 
sake :" and let not his heart ever faint, nor his 
hands grow weak, for want of your sympathies^ 
your prayers, your counsels, and your efforts. 

Let the best interests of the rising generation lie 
near your heart. Youth and children are the hope 
of the churchy and the hope of the world. Seek 



36 

their attendance at the house of God, and in the 
Sdbbath Schoolj >yith the assurance that — ■ 

" Though seed lie buried long in dust, 
"It sha'nt deceive your hope." 

Forget not the destitute and the heathen ; but 
strive, according to your means, to give the Gos- 
pel to every creature, that men may be saved, and 
God be gloi'ifled through the whole earth. 

In short, regulate yonr whole life by the uner- 
ring oracles of God^ hoping for final acceptance 
with him, only through the merits of his co- 
equal Son, 

II. To the Society. 

I am persuaded that not an individual of this 
society is unconvinced that the salutary influences 
of religious institutions is worth more, unspeaka- 
bly more, for this world alone, than all it costs. — - 
But when you think of pardon and eternal salva- 
tion proftered and secured by the Gospel, surely 
you must estimate it above all price. And if you 
are convinced, that both temporal and spiritual 
prosperity have been here secured by the doctrines 
ordinarily dispensed, then, although sometimes 
these doctrines may seem unnecessarily rigid, yet 
you will not, acting as wise men, venture to ea:^ 
change them, for sentiments more lax, and more 
easy and pleasant to the sinful heart, and more 
consonant to the loose practices of men, under the 
apprehension that such would be more eiFectual to 



restrain vice, promote virtue, and avail for the best 
interests of the people. Would jou then secure 
all the blessings of these institutions to yourselves 
^vhile you live, and to your children and future 
generations after you are dead, be determined 
fully to sustain them. For this end ever be united 
in all your designs and eftbrts. Always be suppli- 
ed, if possible, with the regular worship of God, 
and ministration of his word : and let him who 
labors with you in word and doctrine ever have 
such a support that he may give all his time and 
talents to his official duties. 

Nor be satisfied with the regular devotion of 
your substance^ but give also your iujluence m oth- 
er ways ; and especially by your attendance on the 
ministrations o theivord. with your families, fram 
Sabbath to Sabbath, aud by laboring to induce your 
neighbors and acquaintance to unite witli you in 
that which is so reasonable and beneficial. Per- 
mit not yourselves to have " itching ears," nor be 
" carried about by every wind of doctrine," beiiig 
'• double minded" and " unstable ;" but be regular 
and steadfast in your attendance at your own place 
of worship. This kind of support a m inister ni ust 
have from his people, or his hands will be weak, 
his heart faint, and his influence small, however 
great their liberality in other respects ; and this is 
necessary to the greatest prosperity of the society. 

Let the church also ever have your cheerful and 
generous co-operation in all that is calculated to 
advance the best interests of the society : in all 



38 

tliat may relate to the regular ministration of the 
\yord ; to the revwal, trora time to time, and con- ' 
tinuance of the singing of the praises of God in 
the sanctuary ; to the reparation and preservation 
of the house of worship ; to the maintenance of j 
due order, and propriety of behavior by all in your I 
religious assemblies ; to the support of Sabbath 
Schsjols from jear to year; and whatever else may 
be needful to give religious institutions the great- 
est eifect upon the whole community around you, | 
and to send them to the ends of the earth. 

III. To the age dp 

Almost all that were aged at the time of my set- 
tlement here are now dead ; and those, of that 
class, that still remain are now just on the brink 
of the grave. Those Avho were then in the prime 
of life, and are still living, are now among the aged. 
My friends, you have passed through the vigor and 
sprightliness of youth, and the busy, bustling 
scenes of middle life, and one year after another 
has brought you near the end of your days. Fa- 
thers and Mothers, 1 can address you but a few | 
times more; and for you, whom I respect and love, 
and reckon among my dearest friends on earth, | 
who were active in fixing me here as your spiritu-* 
al teacher, among whom I have happily lived and 
reared my family, from whom 1 have received a 
constant succession of kindnesses, and to whom I 
have dispensed divine truth for a quarter of a cen? 
tury ; for yoii^ my aged friends, 1 feel a deep, a 



39 

very deep interest. A part of you, and, oh ! how 
painful the tliouglit, but a part of you, 1 see among 
tlie professed people of God. Those who have^ 
in truth, embraced the great salvation 1 congratu- 
late. Wliile you are grateful that you have lived 
under Gospel light, and been induced to improve 
it for the remission of jour sins and the salvation 
of your souls ; now, as you decline in vigor of 
body and miiid. and bend downwards to the tomb, 
O, live hjoser to the world and nearer to God ; in- 
crease in watchfulness and praj^er ; and, in the 
exercise of a constantly increasing faith and hope, 
quietly wait for a glorious immortality. 

But others of you, aged friends, 1 fear, are to 
the present hour destitute of a well-grounded con- 
fidence that you are prepared to die Could I see 
you, during the little time that yet remains, com- 
ing to the Saviour, and preparing for his kingdom, 
O, how it would rejoice my heart ! yea more, there 
would be joy among the angels in heaven on your 
account. And shall it never be ? There is jet a 
little space, " but hozv little none can know." O, 
waste it not ; aged Fathers and Mothers, waste it 
not. Though God is merciful, still he is just : 
and these sixty or seventy years of rich Gospel 
mercies must be accounted for ; and shall it be 
with unutterable anguish in your soul ? Must the 
shadows of the everlasting- evening gather round 
you, aged friends, w bile yet you have no hope in 
Clmst ; and the night of death usher you into the 
interminable darkness of despair r God forbid. 



40 

IV. To youth and children. 

Among the people, and within this house, I be- 
hold a new generation- All here, who have not 
passed twenty five years of age, were unborn at 
the time of my settlement.* For the young of 
this people 1 have ever felt a deep interest, and for 
their good have devoted much time and labor. — 
The elder part of the community will gradually 
melt away, until they will all disappear; and those 
now young must fill all the places in the church 
and society now filled by others, x^nd, my young 
friends. I would ask, is it not for the best good of *| 
that community you will soon help form, as well 
as for your own best good, to have, and maintain^ 
a character based on an exemption from all immo- 
I'ality, and the love and practice of genuine virtue ? 
Permit me, then, to exhort you to draw your rules 
of life from the infallibh^ standard of divine inspi- 
ration. All that you need to avoid, and all you 
need to embrace, is here laid down in the plainest 
terms ; and, if duly regarded, will ever guide you 
in the right path. But there is another life after 
this : you are destined to an iuimortal existence ; - 
and " he builds too low, who builds beneath the 1 
skies." Realize then your accountability to God ; 
the sinfulness of your heart and life; the need you 
have of a cordial trust in Jesus Christ, the only 



* I have united in marriage, within this town, during the twenty five years 
past, two hundred and twenty-five couple ; and many of the parents of the 
present generation of youth and children are of that number. Of late I have 
united in marriage some of the second generation. 



41 

Saviour ; and nott\ in the morning of your daySj 
prepare for the future. My young friends, many 
of you, by and by, will gather round my lifeless 
remains, and follow them to the grave, where yoii 
also must eventually lie. Should you disregard all 
the instructions you have had, and may yet have^ 
>vhat occasion will there then be for you to exclaim, 
" How have I hated instruction ; and my heart 
" despised reproof; and have not obeyed the voice 
*• of my teacher, nor inclined mine ear to him that 
" instructed meP' But when you meet all the in- 
structions of ministers, of parents, of sabbath school 
teachers ; and all the warnings of the word and 
providence of God, and meet them unimproved, 
O, who can imagine even the anguish with which 
you will then be overwhelmed ? Remember, 
'* God requireth that which is past;" past mercies, 
past warnings, past sins ; all, all will be remem- 
bered, and come into your final account : "Behold 
" now is the accepted time ; behold, now is the day 
" of salvation :" ^- to-day, if ye will hear hisvoicCj 
" harden not your hearts/' 

V. To the whole Congvegaiion. 

tt is matter of deep solemnity to live where the 
Bible, the Sabbath, the preaching of the Gospel, 
and all the means of grace are within your reach : 
and when you stand at the judgment seat of Christ 
how different will be the review from that we have 
taken to-day ! Then, how tremendously solemn 
will it be to have, not twenty-five years only, but 



42 

a whole life, spent in a land of religious means 
and opportunities, to answer for. I do, tlierefore, 
call upon all to improve their privileges while 
they have them. Those especially^ here present 
to-day. who are not accustomed to attend on the 
worship of God in the sanctuary, I do now most 
affectionately invite and entreat to consider, loie, 
my friends, in common with others, enjoy an im- 
mense amount of good through the influence of 
religious institutions ; and yet, in neglecting to 
give countenance and support to these institutions, 
your conduct is calculated to rob yourselves, your 
families, and the community around you, of all 
this good. Should all the people do as you do, iu 
this matter, in what a degraded and w retched con- 
ation would tliey soon be ! If you would but du- 
ly consider the injurious tendency of your prac- 
tice^ as it regards the best interests of yourselves 
and others, in this world only^ it should seem that 
nothing could prevent you from breaking through 
this pernicious habit of neglecting the house and 
worship of God on the Sabbath : as good citizens^ 
as friends to virtue, and the quiet and prosperity 
of community, you would unite with others in sus- 
taining the institutions of the Gospel here. 

And having now an opportunity, I must remind 
you that you have an immortal soul to be saved or 
lost as well as others : and that the day is ap- 
proaching when there will be no more Sabbaths to 
welcome or abuse ; no more sanctuaries to flee to 
or to shun ; no more sermons to improve or to 



48 

neglect ; Avhen time itself shall be no longer, and 
you will enter on the awards of eternity. Duly 
consider these things, and surely you will be irre- 
sistibly impelled to give your countenance and 
support to religious institutions here, and on eve- 
ry returning Sabbath hasten to this house of God, 
to learn your duty and secure your salvation. 

And now, having spoken so freely of others, I 
may be permitted, on an occasion so singular as 
this, and which I cannot expect to be repeated, to 
say a few things more particularly of myself, and 
then 1 shall have done. 

After having supplied the desk here for about 
three months, 1 received, in July, 18 13, a vote from 
this church, " no one opposing," and an " unani- 
mous" vote from the toivv to settle here in the 
work of the Gospel ministry : and on the 13th of 
October following I was ordained. In this world 
of disease and death, and in this age, so remarka- 
bly distinguished for the frequent dismissions of 
ministers, it is not without mingled emotions of 
astonishment and gratitude that I continue still in 
life, and in the pastoral office here. At the begin- 
ning of my ministry " 1 was with you in weakness, 
and in fear, and in much trembling :" and all a- 
long, during the twenty five years past, amidst the 
labors, anxieties and responsibilities of my office, 
I have found occasion to exclaim, '' Who is suffi- 
cient for these things ?" But in answer to the 
prayers of the pious living and dead, " hitherto 
the Lord huth helped me/' and 1 " continue to this 



44 

day." To you tlie vigor of my youth, and the ri- 
per jBxperience and energy of iny manhood, have 
been devoted. Fifty-two years from my birth have 
now elapsed, nearly one-half of whi<ii has been 
spent in labors for the best interests of yourselveSj 
your kindred and your children. That my imper^ 
fections and delBciencies iiave been many I am per^ 
fectly aware ; still it has been my endeavor to be 
" an example to the flock," to practice thfit religion i 
I have professed and preached, faithfully to dis- 
pense the unadulterated truths of God, and clean 
the skirts of my garments from the bh)od of all « 
souls. In preparations lor the desk on the Sab- 1 
bath, and other official efi'orts from neighborhood 
to neighborhood, and from house to house, espe- 
cially in some of the past years of my ministry, 
as you all know, 1 have not been sparing of time, 
labor or strength. In times of prosperity and joy 
I have rejoiced with you ; and with you, when 
Providence frowned, I have prayed and wept. — » 
Especially around the beds of the sick and dyings 
and the graves of departed relatives and friends, 
have we together mingled our sighs, and prayers, 
and. tears. With numbers of you have I had deep- 
ly solemn and affecting interviews when you were 
bowed down under a sense of sin, and enquiring, 
with heart-rending solicitude, "• What must I do 
to be saved ?" and the unspeakable satisfaction of 
directing you to that " Lamb of God, who taketh 
away the sins of the world." Respecting many I 
qau say, " We have taken sweet counsel together^ 



45 

and walked unto the house of God in company ;" 
and had many delightful seasons of communion at 
the tahle of our common Lord, where his hanner 
over us has been love, and we have obtained strength 
to go on our way rejoicing. But these labors and 
scenes must have an end My eyes aheady grow 
dim, grey hairs are thickening upon me, and all 
the powers of nature decay ; and, if continued, my 
labors amono^ vou must necessarily be much cir* 
cumscribed, and, at no distant day, must utterly 
cease. But, brethren and friends, whether my 
continuance be longer or shorter, unless I am a to- 
tal stranger to the emotions of my own heart, I 
feel the deepest interest in your welfare. I am not 
only destitute of a single feeling of animosity to- 
wards an individual of this people, but am possess- 
ed of an affectionate good will to you all. I have 
never while among you. during the whole twenty- 
five years past, received from any individual what 
I supposed to be the least personal insult or abuse ; 
and if I have, at any time, or in any manner, in- 
jured any one, in relation to his property, his char- 
acter, or his feelings, I sincerely regret it, and do 
now crave his forgiveness. My feelings compel 
nie to add, that many, and great, and unceasing, 
have been the expressions of kindness I have re- 
ceived from numbers of this church and people 
since I have been with you. Not only has my 
stipulated salary been annually paid, and conside- 
rable sums contributed to give me a life-member- 
ship in the American Bible, Education, Tract, and 



46 

other kindred Societies ; but occasional donations 
from numbers, and especially from the females at 
a yearly visitation^ have been made, much to my 
encouragement and coiiifort and thai of my fami- 
ly, commencing at the time of my settlement, and 
continuing for the whole of the twenty-five years 
past, down to the present time ; and 1 am con- 
strained to say, the last one by no means the 
least^ 

Eeceive my most cordial thanks for every ex- 
pression of kindness towards me and mine, by 
which the asperities of life have been lessened and 
my pilgrimage greatly cheered. And may He, 
who gave you the means and the disposition, and 
whose hands are full of blessings, reward you a 
thousand fold, and confer his favors upon yoii, and 
your children^ so far as it will be best, without 
measure and without end. 

While you live, and I am a subject of prayer. 



* At the time of my settlement, in 1813, I received from the church and 
people a donation of four hundred dollars, raised by subscription. A few 
months afterwards, when I commenced house-keeping, articles for convenience 
and support, to a very considerable amount in va ue, were generously brought 
in. AX the time of building, in 1821, in provisions, money, lumber, nails, 
stone, labor, &c &c. some hundreds of dollars were contributed. At an an- 
nual visitation of the Ladies, the hearr. of myself and family has been greatly 
cheered, and the means of living increased, by their liberality. In 1831 I re 
ceived as a donation from the Bible Class articles for clothing, worth between 
thirty and forty dollars. From year to year a portion of my fuel has been a 
gift from the people ; and, besides many occasional acts of beneficence from 
individuals, expressive of great kindness and gentros'iy, I received, during the 
last month, to repair the recent loss of a horse, about seventy dollars. Espe. 
cially, since the great rise of the articles oj living, which has borne so pow. 
erfully upon salary men, the people have manifested a spirit of kindness and 
generosity, which, loith economy, has counteracted almost entirely the pressure 
of the times. 



47 

let me have an interest in your supplications.^ — - 
When you come to the throne of grace, in the pub- 
lic and social meeting, or around the family altar, 
or bow before your God where no eye but His be- 
holds you, O, then, bear me on your heart, as a 
minister of the Gospel, as a professed christian, as 
a sinful, dying, accountable creature, that God 
would remember me in mercy relative to all my 
necessities in this world, and those of the world to 
come. 

And now, grateful to God that I have had a dis- 
position and ability to prepare this review, and op- 
portunity and strength to present it to so many in 
this hou:se to-day, my sincere desire is that the re- 
sult of it may be the good of this church and so- 
ciety in general, and the special good of every in- 
dividual : and my most arde it prayer is, that the 
peace and harmony which have subsisted between 
us, in so great a measure, and for so many years, 
may be continued and strengthened even while life 
lasts : and especially that that religion^ w hich some 
of us profess, may be accepted, and loved, and 
practised, by all ; and all at last together possess 
its awards, through grace, in the world of purity, 
and glory above. 

" Beyond the narrow vale of time, 
*• Where bright, celestial ages roll ; 
" To scenes eternd], scenes sublime, 
•' Sht; points the v>'ay, and leads the soul. 

" Baptised with her renewing fire, 
•* May we the crown of glory gain ; 
" Rise, when the hosts of heaven expire? 
•♦ And reign with God, forever reign." 



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